Self-driving Uber kills pedestrian
AN UBER car which became the first driverless vehicle to kill a pedestrian was speeding at the time of the crash.
And it was being supervised by a backup driver who had previously faced court for a traffic offence, it was revealed.
The city’s police chief has said that it’s unlikely the car was at fault. Safety driver, Rafaela Vasquez, could face charges over the death of pedestrian Elaine Herzberg, police said yesterday.
Ms Vasquez had been jailed previously for attempted armed robbery and just last year she was brought to court for breaking a red light. Last night police released a mugshot of Ms Vasquez taken after she was jailed in 2000, when she identified as male.
It is understood drivers for the test cars have the same background checks as taxi drivers – which include not having more than three minor driving offences and one major one within the past three years. Ms Vasquez had passed these checks.
The Volvo XC90 SUV was travelling at 60kph in a 55kph zone when the crash happened in Tempe, Arizona early on Monday, despite being controlled by its onboard computer, police said. Sylvia Moir, the city’s police chief, said: ‘I won’t rule out the potential to file charges against the [backup driver] inside the Uber vehicle.’
The officer said Ms Vasquez, 44, had made no attempt to brake. However, due to the fact that Ms Herzberg, 49, appeared to emerge from the shadows of a central reservation into the road, Chief Moir said she did not think the car, which was in driverless mode, was to blame. Ms Vasquez told police that Ms Herzberg walked out in front of her like a ‘flash’ while pushing her bicycle and that her ‘first alert to the collision was the sound of the collision’.
The death was the first time a pedestrian has been killed by a self-driving car and presents uncharted legal waters.
The grey Volvo was fitted with two video cameras, one facing the street and one on the driver. Chief Moir said that from viewing the videos, ‘it’s very clear it would have been difficult to avoid this collision in any kind of mode, autonomous or human-driven’.
Uber has suspended all tests of self-driving cars while it investigates and tech experts have called for other companies to follow suit.
Toyota Motor Corp last night announced it too will pause autonomous vehicle testing.
Matt Cooper – Page 12
Firm suspends all driverless tests